President of Czech Republic | Current Head of State President of Czech Republic 08.03.2013 - 11:25 | Tags: President Czech Republic , Vaclav Klaus | Category: All , Europe Leaders Milos Zeman, President of Czech Republic (since Mar 8, 2013) Miloš Zeman (born 28 September 1944) is the third and current President of the Czech Republic, in office since 8 March 2013. Previously he served as the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic from 1998 to 2002. As leader of the Czech Social Democratic Party during the 1990s, he transformed it into one of the country’s major parties. He was Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the Czech parliament, from 1996 to 1998. In January 2013, Zeman was elected as President of the Czech Republic. He is the first directly elected President in Czech history; both of his predecessors, Václav Havel and Václav Klaus, were elected by the Parliament.

Early years (Communist Czechoslovakia) Zeman was born in Kolín; his parents divorced when he was two years old, and he was raised by his mother, who was a teacher. He studied at a high school in Kolín; from 1965 he continued his studies at the University of Economics in Prague, graduating in 1969. In 1968, during the Prague Spring, he became a member of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia; however, he was expelled in 1970, due to his disagreement with the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia. He was dismissed from his job and spent more than a decade as an employee of the sports organisation Sportpropag (1971–84). Since 1984, he worked in the company Agrodat. However, he was dismissed again in 1989, this time due to his critical article “Prognostika a přestavba” (Prognostics and Reconstruction). Activities since 1989 In summer 1989, he appeared on Czechoslovak Television with a critical commentary about the unsatisfactory state of the Czechoslovak economy.

His speech caused a scandal. However, the same opinions helped him to join the leaders of the Civic Forum few months later, during the Velvet Revolution. In 1990, Zeman became a member of the Chamber of the Nations of the Czechoslovak Federal Assembly. In 1992, he successfully ran for the Chamber of the People of the Federal Assembly, already as a member of the Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD), which he joined the same year. In 1993, he was elected the chairman of the party, and in the following years he transformed it into one of the country’s major parties. Miloš Zeman and Vladimir Putin in April 2002 The success of ČSSD in the 1996 legislative election allowed him to prevent his rival Václav Klaus and his Civic Democratic Party (ODS) from creating majority government. Zeman became the Chair of the Chamber of Deputies of the Parliament of the Czech Republic and held this post until the early election in 1998.

In 1998, the ČSSD won the election and Zeman became the Prime Minister of his own minority government, which he led throughout the next four years. In April 2001, he was replaced by Vladimír Špidla as the party leader. Zeman then retired and moved to live in the countryside (Vysočina Region). His nomination for Czech president failed at the 2003 presidential election (to Václav Klaus), due to the party disunity. Zeman became an outspoken critic of his former party’s leaders. He left the Czech Social Democratic Party on 21 March 2007, due to conflicts with the leader and chairman of the Czech Social Democratic Party, Jiří Paroubek. In October 2009, he founded a new party, Party of Civic Rights – Zemanovci. The party did not win any seats in the 2010 legislative election. Presidency Miloš Zeman announced his comeback and the intention to run in the first direct presidential election in the Czech Republic in February 2012. Together with Jan Fischer, polling showed him to be one of the two strongest candidates in the election.

Zeman narrowly won the first round of the elections and went into the second round to face Karel Schwarzenberg, winning by a clearer margin. His term began in March 2013. Personal Views Zeman has a similar view on global warming as his former opponent Klaus. According to his opinion, human activity probably could not influence global warming. In June 2011, Zeman, referring to Islam, said “The enemy is the anti-civilisation spreading from North Africa to Indonesia. Two billion people live in it.” He likened Muslims who believe in the Qur’an to antisemitic and racist Nazis. A complaint was lodged against him following the comments. In November 2012, during a speech at the University of Economics in Prague, he explained the dislike that he has for Madeleine Albright, former US Secretary of State. Zeman stated that Albright had promised that there would be no bombardment of civilians during the 1999 NATO bombing of Serbia. “And Madeleine Albright made a promise, and Madeleine Albright didn’t keep the promise. Since that, I don’t like her.” Zeman has said that he will not let the Czech Republic send any ambassador to Kosovo.

He has expressed that he is against the recognition of Kosovo as a state, and views it as a terror regime financed by the narcotics mafia. He describes himself as a “tolerant atheist”. Personal life In the 1970s, Zeman was married to Blanka Zemanová; the couple divorced in 1978. In 1993, he married his assistant Ivana Bednarčíková[30] (born 29 April 1965). He has an adult son named David from the first marriage. His daughter from the second, Kateřina Zemanová (born 1 January 1994), was one of the most visible faces in Zeman’s presidential election team. In a post-election speech, Zeman informally asked her to be his “informal first lady”, as his wife is allegedly shy and doesn’t like the attention of media. Source: Vaclav Klaus, Former President of Czech Republic Vaclav Klaus, President of Czech Republic Vaclav Klaus was born in the Vinohrady district of Prague on June 19, 1941.

He spent his childhood and youth in the neighbourhood of Tylovo namesti square. He obtained his university education at the University of Economics, Prague (majoring in the Foreign Trade Economics and graduating in 1963), and economics thus became his specialist field for his entire life. He took advantage of the relative liberalisation in the then Czechoslovakia in order to study in Italy (1966) and the USA (1969). As a research worker at the Institute of Economics of the Czech Academy of Sciences he completed his postgraduate scientific studies and in 1968 was awarded the title of app. PhD. in Economics. In 1970 he was forced to abandon his research career for political reasons, and left to work at the Czechoslovak State Bank for many years. In 1987 he returned from the bank to his academic work at the Prognostic Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences at the end of 1987. Immediately after the events of November 17, 1989 he entered politics, but did not lose contact with the world of economic science.

He continued to lecture and publish occasionally, and in 1991 he was engaged as a lecturer at Charles University in the field of economics. In 1995 he was appointed professor for the field of finances at the University of Economics, Prague. He embarked on his political career in December 1989, when he became Federal Minister of Finance. Later, in October 1991 he was appointed vice chairman of the government of the Czechoslovak Federal Republic. At the end of 1990 he became the chairman of the then strongest political entity – the Civic Forum. Following its demise in April 1991 he co-founded the Civic Democratic Party, of which he was chairman from its inception until December 2002. He won a parliamentary election with this party in June 1992 and became Prime Minister of the Czech Republic. In this role he shared in the “Velvet Divorce” of the Czechoslovak Federation and the foundation of an independent Czech Republic. In 1996 he successfully defended his post as Prime Minister in election to the Chamber of Deputies. Following the collapse of the governing coalition he tendered his resignation in November 1997.

Following a forced general election in 1998 he became chairman of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech parliament for a four-year period. On February 28, 2003 he was elected President of the Czech Republic. On February 15, 2008 he was elected President of the Czech Republic. Vaclav Klaus is married to the economist Livia Klausova and has two sons and five grandchildren. His son Vaclav is the headmaster of a private grammar school in Prague, and his son Jan works as a financial analyst. For many years in his youth Vaclav Klaus was top sportsman, playing basketball and volleyball, and also enjoys skiing and playing tennis. In his free time he enjoys reading fictitious literature and listening to music, in particular jazz. He has published over 20 books on general social, political and economic themes, and has been awarded a number of international prizes and honorary doctorates from universities all over the world.

Source: Former Prime Minister Is Elected President of Czech Republic - The New York Times The New York Times Europe |Former Prime Minister Is Elected President of Czech Republic Search Continue reading the main story PRAGUE — Milos Zeman , a burly former leftist prime minister and economist known for his outspoken populism, was elected president of the Czech Republic on Saturday, becoming the country’s first popularly elected president. The election of Mr. Zeman, 68, an avowed supporter of European integration, signals the end of the era of Vaclav Klaus, the Czech president for the past 10 years, whose vociferous skepticism of the European Union and scorn for the battle against climate change made him a sometimes awkward partner in Europe and the United States. With all of the vote counted, Mr. Zeman, a feisty man of the people who is often seen with a glass of Czech beer, won 55 percent compared with 45 percent for Karel Schwarzenberg , a pipe-smoking prince who is foreign minister in the current center-right coalition government. During the campaign, Mr. Zeman linked Mr. Schwarzenberg to unpopular austerity measures, including tough spending cuts.

Speaking with characteristic bluntness after his victory was announced, Mr. Zeman said he wanted to be the president of all the Czechs, but “not of Godfather structures here,” an allusion to the country’s problems with corruption. While the Czech presidency is largely ceremonial, the president influences foreign policy, makes central bank appointments and approves judges. Parliament used to select the winner. Advertisement Continue reading the main story The election campaign between a left-leaning populist and an urbane conservative deeply polarized the country. Mr. Schwarzenberg, retooled as a punk rocker in his campaign posters, struck a chord with middle-class urbanites yearning for a change. But it was Mr. Zeman who ultimately won the hearts of a majority of Czechs, buffeted by economic hard times. Once considered an economic and democratic stalwart among the former Soviet bloc countries, the Czech Republic has been suffering from weak economic growth and a spate of corruption scandals. Vaclav Havel, the hero of the 1989 Velvet Revolution that brought down Communism, died in late 2011 , depriving the Czechs of their most celebrated moral leader. There is also a feeling of disappointment here that his revolution came up short.

Mr. Zeman is widely regarded as a canny pragmatist who, as prime minister from 1998 to 2002, helped modernize the economy, setting the stage for the country to join the European Union in 2004. Petr Pithart, a former prime minister and lawyer, who has known Mr. Zeman for decades, said he was strong-willed and could prove to be an even more volatile presence in the Prague Castle, the seat of the Czech president, than the provocative Mr. Klaus. Mr. Zeman has indicated he will attend cabinet meetings and try to influence important legislation. Mr. Pithart predicted he would push the presidential powers to their limits and make life difficult for the government. “Zeman is viewed as a relic of the past,” he said. “He plays on basic fears like xenophobia. He could prove to be a terrible nuisance for the government.” Photo Former prime minister Milos Zeman addressed the media in Prague on Saturday. Credit Petr David Josek/Associated Press During the campaign, he came under criticism after his supporters depicted Mr. Schwarzenberg as a foreigner because he had fled communist Czechoslovakia for Austria in 1948.

Mr. Zeman was also attacked by women’s rights advocates when he explained during a televised debate that raping female serfs had conferred an evolutionary advantage on “squires” that his rival Mr. Schwarzenberg, a prince, did not have. Mr. Zeman’s last name means squire in Czech. Advertisement Continue reading the main story While Mr. Zeman is seen as an avid supporter of close ties with the European Union and the United States, he is also perceived as being close to Moscow. In 2010, he suggested that Russia could become a member of the European Union in the next several decades. Some analysts argue that a 1998 grand coalition agreement between the leftist Mr. Zeman and rightist Mr. Klaus entrenched links between powerful business interests and the main political parties that opened the door to endemic corruption. Mr. Zeman is regarded as personally incorruptible, a perception solidified in the police surveillance recording of a notorious gangster who was caught complaining in March 2000 that Mr. Zeman could not be bribed, and wanted only “a sandwich, three pickles and for people to like him.” Yet his sharp tongue has attracted controversy.

When he was prime minister, he drew fire for comparing the Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat to Hitler. He has also heaped scorn on journalists, in the past labeling them “manure” and “hyenas.” He has shrugged off criticism for his tendency to speak his mind, noting on occasion that his role model, Winston Churchill, had a much harsher vocabulary than his. Mr. Zeman, who led a minority government when he was prime minister, has long been a presence on the Czech political scene. He gained prominence in August 1989 when, during the dying days of Communist Czechoslovakia, he wrote a strident article blasting the failure of the Communist economic system. He had joined the Communist Party during the 1968 Prague Spring, a short-lived blossoming of freedom that was smashed by the invasion of Czechoslovakia by roughly 750,000 Warsaw Pact troops. Two years later he was kicked out of the party and lost his job as an economics professor, forcing him to make a living working for a sporting federation.

After the fall of Communism in 1989, he joined the Social Democratic Party, becoming its leader in 1993, and, five years later, prime minister. Advertisement Continue reading the main story After he failed to win the presidency in 2003, a contest won by Mr. Klaus, he retreated from politics to his dacha in the Czech countryside. But he was soon back meting out advice, delivered on camera in worn sweaters. Zdenek Janek, 66, a retired construction worker from Zabcice, in South Moravia, said he voted for Mr. Zeman because he was a straight talker. “He is a reasonable man who understands economics, talks to the point and is a man of action.” Mr. Zeman will take up his new role in March. Hana de Goeij contributed reporting. A version of this article appears in print on January 27, 2013, on Page A4 of the New York edition with the headline: Former Prime Minister Is Elected President of Czech Republic.

Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe Vaclav Havel | president of Czech Republic | Britannica.com president of Czech Republic František Langer Václav Havel, (born October 5, 1936, Prague , Czechoslovakia [now in Czech Republic]—died December 18, 2011, Hrádeček, Czech Republic ), Czech playwright, poet, and political dissident, who, after the fall of communism , was president of Czechoslovakia (1989–92) and of the Czech Republic (1993–2003). Václav Havel, 1999. Sean Gallup/Getty Images Havel was the son of a wealthy restaurateur whose property was confiscated by the communist government of Czechoslovakia in 1948. As the son of bourgeois parents, Havel was denied easy access to education but managed to finish high school and study on the university level. He found work as a stagehand in a Prague theatrical company in 1959 and soon began writing plays with Ivan Vyskočil.

By 1968 Havel had progressed to the position of resident playwright of the Theatre of the Balustrade company. He was a prominent participant in the liberal reforms of 1968 (known as the Prague Spring), and, after the Soviet clampdown on Czechoslovakia that year, his plays were banned and his passport was confiscated. During the 1970s and ’80s he was repeatedly arrested and served four years in prison (1979–83) for his activities on behalf of human rights in Czechoslovakia. After his release from prison Havel remained in his homeland. Havel’s first solo play , Zahradní slavnost (1963; The Garden Party), typified his work in its absurdist, satirical examination of bureaucratic routines and their dehumanizing effects. In his best-known play, Vyrozumění (1965; The Memorandum), an incomprehensible artificial language is imposed on a large bureaucratic enterprise, causing the breakdown of human relationships and their replacement by unscrupulous struggles for power. In these and subsequent works Havel explored the self-deluding rationalizations and moral compromises that characterize life under a totalitarian political system .

Havel continued to write plays steadily until the late 1980s; these works include Ztížená možnost soustředění (1968; The Increased Difficulty of Concentration); Spiklenci (1971; The Conspirators); the three one-act plays Audience (1975), Vernisáž (1975; Private View), and Protest (1978); Largo Desolato (1985); and Zítra to Spustíme (1988; Tomorrow). When massive antigovernment demonstrations erupted in Prague in November 1989, Havel became the leading figure in the Civic Forum , a new coalition of noncommunist opposition groups pressing for democratic reforms. In early December the Communist Party capitulated and formed a coalition government with the Civic Forum.

As a result of an agreement between the partners in this bloodless “Velvet Revolution,” Havel was elected to the post of interim president of Czechoslovakia on December 29, 1989, and he was reelected to the presidency in July 1990, becoming the country’s first noncommunist leader since 1948. As the Czechoslovak union faced dissolution in 1992, Havel, who opposed the division, resigned from office. The following year he was elected president of the new Czech Republic. His political role, however, was limited, as Prime Minister Václav Klaus (1993–97) commanded much of the power. In 1998 Havel was reelected by a narrow margin, and, under his presidency, the Czech Republic joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in 1999. Barred constitutionally from seeking a third term, he stepped down as president in 2003. Britannica Stories Václav Havel - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up) (1936-2011).

Czech playwright and political leader, born Oct. 5, 1936, in Prague, Czechoslovakia [now Czech Republic]; first essays published when he was 19, first plays performed in 1960s; imprisoned for a total of more than 5 years for speaking out against government abuses; leader of the peaceful "velvet revolution" that ended Soviet-style Communism in Czechoslovakia; in December 1989 became first non-Communist president of Czechoslovakia since 1948; in 1990 discussed Czechoslovak membership in the European Communities with leaders of other European nations; resigned the presidency in 1992 when Slovakia’s regional parliament declared sovereignty, the Slovaks in the federal parliament blocked his reelection, and Slovakia and the Czech Republic agreed to break up the federation; elected president of new Czech Republic in Jan. 1993; literary works include The Memorandum, The Conspirators, Audience, Largo Desolato, and Letters to Olga. Havel died Dec. 18, 2011, in Hradecek, Czech Republic.

Article History 1000+ images about Václav Havel on Pinterest | December, Playwright and Prague Forward Václav Havel (5 October 1936 – 18 December 2011) was a Czech playwright, essayist, poet, dissidentand politician. He was the ninth and last president of Czechoslovakia and the first president of the Czech Republic . He wrote more than 20 plays and numerous non-fiction works, translated internationally. He was one of the signatories of the Charter 77 manifesto, a founding signatory.

See More Czech Republic Time Line Chronological Timetable of Events - Worldatlas.com (1809-1813) Illyrian provinces established by Napoleon included Slovene lands (1815) Napoleon defeated (1848) First Slavic congress convened by Czechs; discussion of political consolidation of Slavs, included Czechs, Slovaks, Poles, Ukrainians, Slovenes, Croats and Serbs 1900s (1918) Last Habsburg Emperor overthrown; after World War I the Austro-Hungarian Empire fell, Czech lands and Slovakia proclaimed establishment of independent Czechoslovakia (1938) Germany, Britain, France and Italy signed the Munich Pact, gave Hitler the right to invade and claimed Czechoslovakia's border areas (1939) Hitler's army invaded Czechoslovakia; World War II started (1942) Slovene Covenant established (1945) Prague uprising, territories of the Czech Republic liberated; World War II ended (1945-1989) Communist Era (1968) Five Warsaw Pact member countries invaded Czechoslovakia, Soviet troops continued to occupy the country

 until 1989 (1980's) Russian Perestroika introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev, marked the last years of communist Czechoslovakia (1989) Velvet Revolution brought an end to communism (1993) Czechoslovakia peacefully split into two independent countries, Czech Republic and Slovakia; Vaclav Havel elected president of Czech Republic; Vaclav Klaus carried on a prime minister, privatization of the public sector top priority (1995) U.S.

funded Radio Free Europe; radio liberty relocated from Munich to Prague (1996) Vaclav Klaus reappointed prime minister (1997) NATO issued formal invitations to Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary; collapse of coalition over economic reform programs, Klaus government resigned; caretaker administration led by Josef Tosovsky (1998) Havel re-elected president; Milos Zeman, leader of the Czech Social Democratic Party, became prime minister; relations with Iran and Iraq strained when Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty started broadcasts to both countries from Prague (1999) Czech Republic full member of NATO 2000s (2000) CDP renewed agreement to support Zeman's minority CSDP government; Austria threatened to block Czech EU membership over startup of first reactor at Temelin nuclear power plant (2001) Czech government and Austria's Chancellor Schuessel moved to settle dispute over Temelin nuclear power plant (2002) Prague suffered worst flooding in 200 years; EU summit in Copenhagen formally invited Czech Republic to join (2003) Former Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus elected president; Czechs voted in favor of going ahead with EU membership in 2004

 (2004) Czech Republic one of 10 new nations to join the EU; Vladimir Spidla resigned as prime minister; Stanislav Gross appointed premier (2005) Stanislav Gross resigned as premier, followed by allegations about his financial affairs (2006) General elections resulted in a hung parliament; President Klaus appointed Mirek Topolanek prime minister for a second time; talks began on forming grand coalition (2007) U.S.

President George Bush visited Czech Republic; hundreds protested against U.S. plans for a radar base near Prague; Czech Republic joined the EU's Schengen Treaty free movement zone (2008) Vaclav Klaus re-elected president; Czech Republic signed agreement allowing U.S. base components of its planned missile defense system on Czech territory; Russia threatened retaliation (2008) Long-lost opera, Argippo, written for the Czech capital by Antonio Vivaldi, was performed for the first time in 278 years in Prague (2008) U.S.

agreed to base part of its missile defense system in Czech Republic (2009) Czech Republic took over EU presidency; Mirek Topolanek, center-right government leader, lost parliamentary vote of confidence; Topolanek resigned (2009) Six Czech hikers died in avalanche in Austrian Alps (2009) US President Barack Obama, canceled plans for the missile defense bases in Czech Republic and Poland (2010) ODS leader Petr Necas formed a coalition government with the right-wing TOP 09 party and the centrist public affairs party See Also A Brief History of the Czech Republic A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CZECH REPUBLIC By Tim Lambert THE FIRST CZECHS From about 400 BC what is now the Czech Republic was inhabited by a Celtic race. The Romans called them the Boii and they gave their name to Bohemia. Then about 100 AD a Germanic people called the Marcomanni conquered the area. The Romans traded with the Marcomanni and sometimes fought with them but they never conquered this part of the world. In the sixth century a Slavic people entered what is now the Czech Republic. According to legend a man called Cech led them.

However for centuries they were only a collection of tribes not a single, united people. However in the 9th century a people called the Moravians from the frontier of the Czech Republic and Slovakia created an empire in Central Europe. It was called the Great Moravian Empire and it included what is now the Czech Republic, Slovakia and parts of Germany and Poland. German missionaries began to convert the people of the empire to Christianity. Then the ruler Ratislav (846-870) asked the Byzantine emperor to send missionaries. He sent St Methodius and St Cyril. Wenceslas inherited the throne of Bohemia (Czech Republic) in 921 when he was 14. When he came of age he tried to convert his people to Christianity. However people led by his brother Boleslav opposed him. In 929 Wenceslas was murdered. Afterwards he was canonized (declared a saint). Moreover the march of Christianity could not be stopped and soon all of Bohemia was converted. The Moravian Empire reached a peak under Svatopluk (871-894). However in 896 a fierce people from the east called Magyars invaded.

They conquered Slovakia but the Czechs remained independent. THE CZECHS IN THE MIDDLE AGES Furthermore the different tribes in what is now the Czech Republic gradually became united under the Premyslid dynasty. However the Germans overshadowed them. In 950 Bohemia became part of the Holy Roman Empire. What was this empire? The Christian writer Augustine claimed that God created the Roman Empire for the good of mankind. He said there should be one empire led by an emperor just as there was one church led by the pope. In the early 9th century a man named Charlemagne conquered most of western and central Europe. He claimed he was the successor of the old Roman emperors (even though his empire did not include Rome). After his death his empire split into three parts. The eastern part eventually became Germany. However the ruler of the eastern past kept the title emperor. In time his realm became known as the Holy Roman Empire. However it soon became a patchwork quilt of states and the emperor had little power. The Czechs resisted any interference by the emperors in their domestic affairs. In the 13th century Bohemia (Czech Republic) prospered. Silver and gold were discovered and mining became an important industry.

German settlers, craftsmen, farmers and miners were encouraged to come and live in Bohemia. Towns and trade flourished. The Premyslid dynasty ended in 1306 when Vaclav III was assassinated. Eventually the Czech nobles offered the throne to John of Luxembourg, husband of Vaclav's sister. The 14th century was a golden age for the Czechs. John, who ruled until 1346 spent most of his time abroad but his son Charles or Karel IV was a great ruler. Under him Bohemia became rich and powerful. In 1355 he was elected Holy Roman Emperor. In 1356 he issued a golden bull which confirmed that the Holy Roman Empire was a commonwealth of sovereign states not a single empire. Charles introduced more efficient farming methods from France. This together with its gold and silver mines made Bohemia prosperous. Charles built many new public buildings and under him the arts flourished. Furthermore in 1348 Charles founded a university in Prague - the first in central Europe. THE HUSSITES By the late 14th century the church was very rich and powerful. It had also fallen into disrepute.

The church had split and there were two popes, both claiming to be the 'true' pope. Some people began to demand reform. In England John Wycliffe criticized some of the church's practices and beliefs. His teaching spread to Prague University. Leading the reformers was Jan Hus. At first the king was willing to support the Hussites for political reasons. However Prague University was founded not just for Czech students from all over the Holy Roman Empire. They were divided into four groups called nations, Saxons, Bavarians, Poles and Czechs. Each had equal voting rights. However in 1409 Vaclav IV changed the system. He decreed that in future the Czech nation would have 3 votes and the other nations would have one each. In protest German students and lecturers left. Yet Vaclav IV changed sides in 1412 when he was offered a percentage of the money from sales of papal indulgences. (An indulgence was a document. If you bought one your sins were forgiven). The Hussites disapproved of this practice and they split with the king. In 1412 Hus and his supporters were expelled from Prague University and excommunicated. They then became wandering preachers.

Eventually Hus was called to the Council of Constance to answer charges of heresy. The Holy Roman Emperor, Sigismund promised him safe conduct. Nevertheless Hus was burned to death in July 1415. The Czechs were appalled and afterwards many of the practices of the Czech church were reformed. Certain priests were removed from their parishes. However in 1419 King Vaclav agreed to their reinstatement. This provoked rebellion. Hus's supporters threw their enemies out of the windows of a building. The Pope preached a 'crusade' against the 'heretics'. However the Czechs defeated them in battle. Under their leader Jan Zizka they went out to meet the 'crusaders'. The Hussites surrounded themselves with heavy wooden wagons for protection. Women fought alongside men and they used farm tools adapted as weapons. Using these unorthodox methods they crushed the 'crusaders' at the battle of Vitkov. Meanwhile the Hussites had split into two groups. The more radical wing founded a new town called Tabor. They became known as Taborites. The Taborites did not only criticize the church they attacked all wealth and privilege. Not surprisingly they were very unpopular with the upper class.

The more moderate wing of the Hussites wanted only religious not social changes. They were called Utraquists. At first the Taborites and the Utraquists were forced to unite to fight the Catholics. The Bohemian Diet (parliament) devised the Four Articles of Prague, which was meant to be a compromise. However the unity did not last long. In 1431 the Catholic 'crusaders' were crushed in a battle near Domazlice. Afterwards the Catholic church realized it had to resort to diplomacy. In 1433 they made peace with the Utraquists. The Taborites refused to stop fighting and as a result the Utraquists turned against them. (Wealthy Czechs feared the Taborites because they were opposed to the existing social order). Together Utraquists and Catholics crushed the Taborites at the battle of Lipany in 1434. Afterwards the church in Bohemia (Czech Republic) remained a moderate Hussite one. In the 15th century Bohemia, like the rest of central Europe, was faced with the growing threat from Turkey.

Meanwhile Bohemia had a succession of weak rulers and the Czech nobility grew more powerful at the expense of the king and the towns. THE CZECHS UNDER HAPSBURG RULE However in 1526 a Hapsburg became Ferdinand I. (The Hapsburgs were a powerful family who ruled several European states). The Hapsburgs restored strong central rule. However Ferdinand was a Catholic. At first he was forced to accept the Hussite Church in Bohemia but in 1546-47 he joined in a war against Protestants in Germany. Many Czechs rebelled but the rebellion failed. Afterwards many prominent Czech Protestants were executed. Furthermore Ferdinand invited the Jesuits to Bohemia to try and convert his people to Catholicism. However he had to tread carefully to avoid alienating his Czech subjects. His son Rudolf II was even more tolerant and privately said he was neither Catholic nor Protestant but Christian. He was also a patron of the arts and learning and under him Czech culture flourished. However he abdicated in 1611 in favor of his brother Matthias. In 1617 Matthias named his staunchly Catholic cousin Ferdinand as his heir.

The result was a rebellion by Protestant nobles. Other countries, both Catholic and Protestant took sides and as result Europe was plunged into a terrible war - The Thirty Years War. It began in 1618 when rebels threw Catholic nobles out of a window in Prague - the so-called defenestration of Prague. However the Czech Protestants were crushed at the battle of Bila Hora (White Mountain) in 1620. Afterwards a number of Protestant nobles were executed and their property was confiscated. In 1627 a new constitution was imposed. The powers of the Czech Diet (parliament) were curtailed and Roman Catholicism became the only recognized religion. Meanwhile the Czechs suffered terribly during the war. In 1632 the Protestant Saxons took Bohemia but the Catholic forces soon recaptured it. Then for 13 years from 1635 to 1648 the two sides, Protestant and Catholic fought over Bohemia. When the war finally ended in 1648 Bohemia was devastated and her population was greatly reduced. Afterwards Bohemia was a predominantly Catholic state. After the war Protestant landowners had their estates confiscated.

(Much of this confiscated land was given to Catholic Germans). The Hapsburg rulers had much power and the Diet had little. The Czechs became part of an empire including Austria and Hungary. Czech culture suffered. However Czech fortunes revived in the mid-18th century. From 1740 Maria-Theresa was empress of Austro-Hungary. She was more sympathetic to the Czechs than previous rulers. However Bohemia was involved in the War of the Austrian Succession from 1740 to 1748. French soldiers occupied Prague in 1741-1742 and by the Prussians in 1744. Furthermore in 1757 the Prussians defeated the Austrians in a battle at Prague during the Seven Years War (1756-1763). In 1773 the empress banned the Jesuits but in 1781 her successor introduced religious toleration. THE CZECHS IN THE 19TH CENTURY In the early 19th century Czech industry grew rapidly. The textile industry boomed. The sugar industry and an iron industry also prospered.

Meanwhile interest in Czech culture and history grew. Among the leading minds of the 19th century were Josef Dobrovsky (1753-1829) a linguist and Frantisek Palacky a historian. Furthermore during the 19th century the great Czech composer Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904) wrote operas, concertos and symphonies. Nationalism and the ideas of the French Revolution grew more and more important during the 19th century and in 1848 they exploded in revolution. It was ignited by a revolution in France in February, which was followed by revolutions in other parts of Europe. Alarmed by the unrest sweeping Europe the Austrian emperor at first backed down. He promised his people constitutional changes. In June a Slav Congress was held in Prague. At that time Czech radicals erected barricades in the streets of Prague. The army withdrew but used artillery to bombard Prague. The city surrendered. Soon revolutions in the Austro-Hungarian empire collapsed. However in 1859 Austria was defeated in a war with France. In 1866 the Austrians suffered another defeat in a war with Prussia.

Following these humiliations the Dual Monarchy was created in 1867. Austria and Hungary became independent states with one monarch. However the Czechs were not granted autonomy and nationalism and demands for independence grew. Meanwhile industrialization continued in what is now the Czech Republic. Coal mining boomed. So did an engineering industry. The textile industry also flourished. THE CZECHS IN THE FIRST WORLD WAR In 1914 the Czechs were reluctant to fight for the Austrians and Magyars. They were also reluctant to fight the Russians (fellow Slavs). On the eastern front thousands surrendered to the Russians rather than fight them. Meanwhile in Paris a university lecturer called Tomas Masaryk formed an organisation called the Czech Committee Abroad. (It later changed its name to the Czech National Committee). In November 1915 his organisation called for an independent Bohemia and Slovakia. On 29 June 1918 the Committee was recognized as the provisional government of Czechoslovakia by France. It was recognized by Britain on 9 August, by the USA on 18 September and by Italy on 3 October. By then Austria-Hungary was collapsing.

On 14 October Masaryk gave US President Wilson the Czechoslovak declaration of independence. (Later called the Washington declaration). On 28 October 1918 an independent Czechoslovak Republic was declared in Prague. Meanwhile in 1916 some Czech prisoners of war agreed to join the French foreign legion and fight the Austrians. In 1917 a separate Czech army was formed in Russia. However in November 1917 the Communists staged a revolution. Russia then became embroiled in civil war. The Czech soldiers were keen to return home but on 20 May 1918 the Communists demanded that they disarm. They refused and they had to fight the Russian Communists to get home. CZECHOSLOVAKIA The new state of Czechoslovakia was the only industrialized state in eastern Europe. It also proved to be the only successful democracy. Its first president was Masaryk. He resigned in 1935. During the inter-war period Czechoslovakia produced the great writer Franz Kafka. Other writers were Jaroslav Hasek and Karel Capek who first used the word robot for a mechanical man in his play R.U.R.

(Rossum's Universal Robots). However the new republic was faced with the problem that it contained large national minorities. On 29 October 1918 Germans in north and west Bohemia declared their independence. However the wartime allies were afraid that they would join with Austria. French and Italian troops were sent to the German areas and they were made part of Czechoslovakia again but the German minorities desire for independence spelled trouble for the future. Meanwhile after 1929 Czechoslovakia suffered from the economic depression. By 1933 industrial output fell to only 60% of its pre-war level. Unemployment soared till it was almost one third of the workforce. However after 1935 the Czech economy slowly recovered. However in the late 1930s the main question was the Germans who lived in the Sudetenland. They formed a separatist party, the German Sudeten Party and by 1935 60% of the Germans who lived in the area voted from them. Then after annexing Austria in March 1938 Hitler turned his attention to Czechoslovakia. Konrad Henlein the head of the Sudeten German Party demanded full autonomy.

In May German soldiers began moving towards the frontier. The Czech government ordered a partial mobilization. Henlein now demanded that the Sudetenland be joined with Germany. Shamefully, Britain and France were unwilling to fight to defend Czechoslovakia. On 15 September Chamberlain, the British prime minister met Hitler at Berchtesgaden. Later he met Hitler at Bad Godesbury in an attempt to 'appease' him. On 23 September the Czech army fully mobilized. Unfortunately on 30 September Chamberlain and the French prime minister met Hitler at Munich and agreed to all his demands. The Czechs had no option but to agree. President Benes resigned on 5 October. He left Czechoslovakia on 22 October. Then, on 15 March the Germans occupied the rest of the Czech lands. Slovakia became a separate country - and a German satellite. Finally on 21 July 1940 the British government recognized Benes as the leader of a Provisional Czechoslovakian government in exile. Also in 1941 Reinhard Heydrich was made 'Reichs Protector' or ruler of the Czech lands. A wave of executions followed.

Heydrich also began deporting Jews to concentration camps. However on 27 May 1942 Heydrich was assassinated by Czech agents who had parachuted into the country. The Germans carried out a terrible revenge. They burned the villages of Lidice and Lezaky and killed all the men. Women and children were deported. On 6 October 1944 Czech soldiers fighting alongside the Russian army crossed the border from Poland into Czechoslovakia. On 4 April 1945 President Benes formed a provisional government at Kosice. It was made up of Socialists, Social Democrats and Communists. Finally on 5 May the people of Prague rose in revolt. They fought the Germans until 9 May when the Russian army arrived in the city. After the Second World War Germans from the Sudetenland were expelled from Czechoslovakia. COMMUNIST CZECHOSLOVAKIA Furthermore the Communists began taking over Czechoslovakia. Although Benes was president the Communists held the key posts of Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Minister of the Interior. They also controlled the trade unions.

In elections held in May 1946 the communists obtained 40% of the vote and emerged as the largest party. At the beginning of 1948 the Communist minister of the interior began to purge the police of 'unreliable' officers and replace them with Communists. In February 1948 the non-Communist members of the cabinet resigned in protest, hoping President Benes would dismiss the Communist prime minister Klement Gottwald. However the Communists held mass demonstrations and the Russian army began to build up along the Hungarian border. Prime minister Gottwald then demanded that President Benes appoint a new cabinet of Communists, which he did. Then on 9 May parliament passed a new constitution giving the Communist party a 'leading role'. Benes refused to sign it and resigned. Gottwald replaced him as president. Meanwhile a liberal politician named Jan Masaryk was murdered. The Communists lost no time in creating a totalitarian regime in Czechoslovakia. Industry was nationalized and in the 1950s agriculture was collectivized. At first the Communists arrested their opponents. Then they turned on their own people.

In the early 1950s the Communist party was 'purged'. Members were executed or imprisoned. In 1953 after the death of Stalin Czechoslovakia was hit by demonstrations and strikes. The army was sent in to suppress them. Czechoslovakia remained a Stalinist society. However in the 1960s a slight 'thaw' happened. Censorship was relaxed and restrictions of foreign travel were made less rigorous. As a result criticism of the regime grew and it reached a crescendo in 1968. In January 1968 a Slovak named Alexander Dubcek became First Secretary of the Communist party. During the so-called Prague Spring of 1968 he introduced a more liberal regime. It was sometimes called 'socialism with a human face'. Censorship ended and people openly criticized the Communist party. However the Russians were appalled and they were determined to end the liberalization. Finally on the night of 20-21 August 1968 Russian forces and those from other Warsaw Pact countries invaded Czechoslovakia. The Prague spring was at an end. A long period of repression followed.

On 16 January 1969 a student called Jan Palach (1948-1969) poured petrol over himself and set it alight in Wenceslas Square in Prague. He died in hospital on 19 January 1969. Despite his and other brave protests repression continued. However the demand for human rights in Czechoslovakia would not die. In 1977 a group of people formed Charta 77 (Charter 77) to protest about human rights abuses. Meanwhile in 1969 Czechoslovakia became the first country in the world to make wearing seat belts compulsory. In 1978 Vladimir Remek became the first Czech in space. In 1989 the Communist tyranny in Czechoslovakia crumbled. On 17 November the police attacked a student demonstration. Events then moved quickly. On 19 November human rights activists formed the Civic Forum. On 20 November huge demonstrations were held. More followed in the next few days. On 24 November the government resigned but the demonstrations continued. On 27 November a 2 hour strike was held.

Eventually the Communist party agreed to end 1 party rule. They also promised to form a coalition government. However on 3 December it turned out that Communists dominated the coalition. The people were not satisfied and they held more demonstrations. Finally on 10 December a new government was formed. This time Communists were a minority. The Federal Assembly elected Vaclav Havel president of Czechoslovakia on 29 December. In June 1990 multi-party elections were held and the process of turning Czechoslovakia into a market economy began. Prague THE CZECH REPUBLIC The Velvet Revolution was followed by the Velvet Divorce. The Czechs and Slovaks were two quite different people with different histories. In June 1992 the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia won elections and pressed for Slovak independence. Czechs and Slovaks quickly reached agreement and on 1 January 1993 Czechoslovakia separated into two states, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The first President of the Czech Republic was Vaclav Havel. In February 2003 he was replaced by Vaclav Klaus. Today the Czech Republic is a prosperous industrial nation.

In 1999 the Czech Republic joined NATO. In 2004 it joined the EU. Like the rest of Europe the Czech Republic suffered in the recession of 2009. Yet the Czech Republic soon recovered and today it is a prosperous country. The Czech Republic is noted for making machines, paper, glass, steel and ceramics. It is also famous for beer. Then in 2016 Czechia became the official alternative name for the country. Today the population of the Czech Republic is 10.6 million.

Question: Who was both the last President of Czechoslovakia and the first President of the Czech republic?
Answer: VACLAV HAVEL